Vader - Litany

VADER - Litany (METAL MIND - CD 2000)

Honestly, it's been ages since I have listened to Vader's fourth attack titled "Litany". An attack is absolutely a proper word for this album, because it is short, fierce, uncompromising assault on your ears - which ends with a total knockout. Yeah, this album is so bloody intense, so furious that for me it's almost like a death metal equivalent of "Reign in Blood" - short, but intense and fast from start to finish, with not even a single second wasted. Take "Cold Demons" as a prime example, where riffs and the ultimate blasting of Doc are compared to the battle, tanks, machine guns or whatever - this album spits forth its ammunition with great speed and simply fuckin kills. 

And that energy, intensity, this savagery of "Litany" is its main strength. Songwriting is not the most exceptional in Vader's career. Actually, I belong to those, who think that all the best songs, which Vader did, all the best ideas and arrangements were on their first two albums. But "Litany" is just different. It's rather focused on simplicity, with shorter, more in your face songs, where you can get three or four riffs only, all crammed in even two minutes of cannonading death metal! Three songs on this album are under two minutes! So, you can imagine how fast, how straight forward this album is. Of course, if you expect something more from your music other than just blasts, then "Litany" may disappoint you. There are obviously slower songs here also, but even they have this brute force and sound only like a short break to take breath before another cannonade. If you like melody, you won't find them here neither. And that’s good!  

Even if sometimes these riffs or arrangements can sound repetitive, for Vader of course (like "Cold Demons" vs "Forward to Die!!"), "Litany" with its 30 minutes is just too short to start to bore me. I fully enjoy the album and even though I had this break from listening to it, refreshing it was a great idea. Powerful, merciless and just awesome high speed death metal and one of Vader's highlights. Oh, re-recording of "The Final Massacre" is another huge bonus also! Fury unleashed! 

Standout tracks: "Wings", "Cold Demons", "The Final Massacre", "The One Made of Dreams" 

Verdict: 80/100